Apparatus for feeding articles



May 3, 1960 A. 1.. VAN NEST ETAL 2,934,816

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ARTICLES Filed June 18, 1956 INVENTORS' AJ. VMHVEsT x M. WAUBERG AM ATTafiA/) 2,934,816 APPARATUS Fon FEEDING ARTICLES Arden L. Van Nest and lvlarshall'walllierg, Indianapolis,

Ind., assignors to Western Elctiic Company, Incorporated, New York, N.Y., 'a corporation of New York Application June 18, 1956-, Serial No. 592,010 3 claims. "(11. 29400.)

This invention relates to apparatus for feeding articles, and more particularly to appai'a'tiis for feding protector assemblies to precisely located positions in a press.

An object of the invention is to provide new and improved apparatus for feeding protector assemblies through precise locations in a press.

Another object of the invention is to feed protector assemblies roughly to a position between two springpressed escapement arms which precisely locate the assembly.

An apparatus illustrating certain features of the invention may include a guideway along which a protector block assembly is fed by a ratchet feed mechanism past escapement arms, which are permitted to pivot out of the way of the assembly during the feeding stroke but prevent retraction of the assembly on the return stroke of the ratchet mechanism. The arms also are provided with rounded assembly-engaging heads, which engage the assembly and precisely locate it after the ratchet has been retracted.

A complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from the following detailed description of an apparatus forming a specific embodiment thereof, when read in conjunction with the appended drawings, in which Fig. l is a top plan view of an apparatus illustrating certain features of the invention, and

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary front elevation of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, there is shown therein an apparatus for feeding protector block assemblies 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 one-at-a-time along a guideway or groove 15 in a base or stationary platen 16 of a feeding punch 17, which also includes a reciprocable platen 18 having plungers 19 for feeding protector block elements (not shown) in sockets 20 in the assemblies. A belt 23 running in the groove 15 from left to right, as viewed in the drawings, urges the protector assemblies to the right until the assembly 12 engages a rounded head 25 of an escapement arm 26. The head 25 is rigidly secured to a threaded shank 27 adjustably threaded into a pivoted arm 28 and locked in adjusted position by a nut 29. The arm 28 is mounted pivotally on a pin 33 secured to the base 16, and is urged in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 1, by a tension spring 34 secured to a lug or bracket 35 on one end to a clamp screw 36 threaded into the arm 28 at its other end. The spring 34 urges a fiat 38 against an adjustment screw 39 threaded through a bracket or lug 40, which is fixed to the base 16 and similar to the lug 35.

The friction between the belt 23 and the protector assemblies to the left of the head 25 of the escapement 26 is just suificient to overcome the resistance of the escapement 26 caused by the spring 34, but is not sufiicient to overcome both the escapement 26 and an escapement 45 biased by a spring 44. The escapement 45' is identical with the escapement 26. The force of a ratchet feed 46 is required to feed the assemblies past the escapement 45. A third escapement 47 is positioned to the right of the United States Patent 2 escapement 45 and is identical with the escapements 26 and 45, the escapements 45 and 47 being provided with rounded heads 48 and 49, respectively.

The ratchet feed 46 includes a bar 51 slidable along a guideway formed by an upwardly projecting ridge 52 a and upwardly projecting pins 53 and 54 fixed to the base 16. The bar 51 is secured adjustably by a bracket 58 to a piston rod 59 which is reciprocated by a cylinder 60 in synchronism with the operation of the movable platen 18 of the punch 17. Pins 6 1 afid 62 projecting into slots 63 and 64, respectively, in the bar 51 also guide the bar as it is reciprocated and limit its travel. The bar 51 carries pushing lugs 65 and 66 mounted pivotallyon pins 67 and 68 carried by the ear. The lug 65 is pivotal in a counterclockwise directioinas viewed in Fig. 1, and in a slot 71, and the lug 66, similarly, is pivotal in a slot 72 in the bar 51.

The bar 51, when in the position shown in Fig. 1,- is in its forward position and the lugs 65 and 66 are in their furthermost extremes of clockwise movement in the slots 71 and 72, walls 75 and 76 of the slots 71 and 72 preventing further clockwise movement of the lugs. As

the bar 51 is retracted to the left, cani bases 78 and 79' of the lugs 65 and 66 engage ribs 80 and 81 of the assemblies 13 and 14, and are pivoted in counterclockwise directions until tips 82 and 83 of the lugs clear the ribs 80 and 81 and move to the left of the ribs 80 and 81, at which time fingers 85 and 86 of the lugs 65 and 66, respectively, engage the pins 53 and 64 and the lugs 65 and 66 are pivoted back to their feed positions in which the walls and 76 of the slots 71 and 72 are engaged by the lugs. The pin 54 is shorter than the pin 53 so that the finger 85 is free to pass over the pin 54 without engaging it. However, the finger 86 reaches down lower than the finger 85 so that the finger 86 cannot clear the pin 54 and is pivoted to its feed position by the pin 54.

In the forward stroke of the piston rod 59, the bar 51 is moved to the right as shown in Fig. 1 with the tips 82 and 83 of the lugs 65 and 66 engaging the ribs and 81, and push the assemblies 13 and 14 approximately one assembly length to the right. This removes the assembly 14 from the position under the platen 18, and moves the assembly 13 to a slightly overfed position below the platen 18. Then the friction of the belt 23 on the assemblies 10, 11 and 12 move the next assembly 12 into the position previously occupied by the assembly 13. Then, as the bar 51 is retracted after feeding the assembly 13 slightly too far to the right, the head 49 engages the assembly 13 and swings it back until an arm 91 of the escapement 47 engages an adjustment stop 92 at which time the assembly is moved against the head 48 of the escapement 45 and is precisely located beneath the plungers 19 of the platen 18, the platen 18 then is actuated either automatically or manually to seat the elements previously placed in the sockets 20, is retracted and the operation described hereinabove is repeated.

The above-described apparatus serves to precisely locate assemblies at the base 16 even though the ratchet feed 46 per se may not be precise, and is very simple and inexpensive in its construction, maintenance and operation.

It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are simply illustrative of the application of the principles of the invention. Numerous other arrangements may be readily devised by those skilled in the art which will embody the principles of the invention and fall within the spirit and scope thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for feeding and aligning articles with respect to a pressing head, first continuously operating means for moving the articles past said pressing head, a first resiliently urged escapement for engaging and holding an article against the effect of the moving means, said first escapement positioned to prevent movement of the article past the pressing head, second intermittently operating means for engaging and advancing the article past the first escapement, a second resiliently urged escapement for engaging 'and'holding an article advanced past said'first 'escapem'ent against the eflect of'the first'continuously operated moving means, and means on the second intermittently operating advancing means for engaging and moving an article past said second escapement.

2. An apparatus for feeding articles which comprises a continuously moving belt for advancing the articles, a first pivotally mounted arm projecting into the path of movement of the articles on the belt, resilient means for yieldingly urging the first arm into said path with sufficient force to permit the articles to be moved therepast by the belt, a second pivotally mounted arm projecting into the path of movement of the articles on the belt beyond the first arm in the direction of movement of the articles, resilient means for yieldingly urging the second arm into said path with sufiicient force to hold the articles against movement by the belt past the second pivotally mounted arm, a reciprocating bar, and a lug pivotally mounted on the bar for intermittently engaging an article positioned between the first and second arms to force the article past said second arm.

3. An apparatus for feeding and aligning articles with respect to a reciprocating pressing head which comprises,

a continuously moving belt for moving the articles past the pressing head, a first pivotally mounted arm projecting into the path of movement of the articles, resilient means for yieldingly urging the first arm into said path to permit the movement of the articles therepast by the belt, a second pivotally mounted arm projecting into the path of movement of the articles beyond the first arm in the direction of movement of the articles, resilient means for yieldingly urging the second arm into said path with sufficient force to preclude the movement of articles therepast, a third pivotal arm projecting into the path of movement of the articles beyond the second arm in the direction of movement of the articles, resilient means for yieldingly urging the second arm into said path to engage and hold an article moved past said third arm, and feed means for intermittently moving the articles past the second and third arms.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,133,565 Krankkonen Mar. 30, 1915 1,726,418 Aldrich et al Aug. 27, 1929 1,795,141 Phelps Mar. 3, 1931 1,953,757 Hessenbruch Apr. 3, 1934 2,357,693 Samson Sept. 5, 1944 2,387,766 Moore Oct. 30, 1945 2,480,192 Laxo Aug. 30, 1949 

